Jumpers Not Included
by maria100
Summary: After Sheppard causes an accident in Atlantis, he and Weir find themselves involved in an disagreement. Will the Atlantis team regret the harsh words spoken to Sheppard when he is taken hostage offworld and will they be able to fix the damage to Atlantis in time to save him?
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: Hi guys, this story has taken a while to finish but here it is, complete. Each chapter has been modified since first being posted but if you read it the first time round don't worry, the storyline has not been changed. For those new to this story, the chapters are in couplets, Chapter One is Sheppard's point of view and then the story continues in Chapter Two from Weir's point of view etc for the rest of the story until the epilogue. Hope you enjoy it. _

**Jumpers Not Included **

**A Stargate Atlantis Fanfic by maria100 and elora**

Chapter One:

'Now if you'll place you're hands on the controls, you will find that it's slightly different to flying anything from Earth, the Jumper seems to be able to read the pilot's mind.' Lieutenant Colonel John Sheppard explained carefully to his new student in Puddle Jumper One which was situated safely on the ground in the Jumper bay. Doctor Weir had asked him to set up a training programme for new pilots. They had lost many of their proficient flyers recently. Sheppard thought bitterly of the sad events and the loss of life that had occurred including Sergeant Markham's death whilst protecting Atlantis from Wraith attack.

'Really like everything I'm thinking?' Sheppard's new 'student' Lieutenant Magson asked, her voice sounding quite and timid to his ears. She was reluctantly holding onto the controls of the Jumper and Sheppard could tell that she would rather be anywhere but where she was.

'Well not everything. See look.' Sheppard confidently took over the controls. 'I'm thinking of a map of this world.' Instantly a large screen popped up in front of the window of the Puddle Jumper displaying information of Lantea, the planet on which Atlantis was situated.

'That's amazing Colonel!' Magson exclaimed excitedly, her unwillingness of a moment ago seeming to have disappeared. 'All of this is so new to me. I was only transferred to Atlantis because of my strong ATA gene; I didn't have any experience of the Stargate programme before then. It was kind of a shock. You know, aliens, space travel. Frankly I feel at a disadvantage here.' She said openly.

'Sounds the same as how I ended up here,' Sheppard stated candidly standing up behind the pilot chair and ushering her to sit back down. 'and somehow I've ended up in charge of the military on Atlantis, just try your best Lieutenant.

'Anyway the Puddle Jumper does have one serious flaw in my opinion.' Sheppard said to the young lieutenant, putting the controls back into her hands. 'It can't provide turkey sandwiches, believe me I've tried, it does everything else that you can think of but when I think of a turkey sandwich, nothing, and I could really use one as well, I haven't even eaten breakfast yet!' He made his best angry look, creasing his forehead and turning the corners of his mouth down comically. It had the desired effect; Magson giggled appreciatively and seemed more at ease. 'Don't worry Lieutenant you'll fit in fine here.

'Now we'll practice one last thing as I have a very significant meeting to attend with Doctor Weir on the mainland which under no circumstances can I be late for.' Sheppard said pompously, managing to sound exactly like Doctor McKay. 'Try to think of Atlantis.' Sheppard ordered.

Magson squeezed her eyes shut tightly. After a few minutes she opened them frustrated. 'It's no use sir, nothing's happening.'

'Don't give up yet, it may take some time.' He replied patiently.

'But Colonel how long did it take you?' She asked disheartened.

'Well, that's completely beside the point.' Sheppard muttered hastily, not wanting to revel that he had managed it first attempt. It would be cruel to tell her this and would surely crush her spirit even more than it already was. It wasn't the best way to train someone, Sheppard decided.

'Let's give up you have more crucial places to be, you said so yourself a few minutes ago, sir.' Magson suggested.

'Er yeah about that…' Sheppard murmured, loath to admit that he was in fact attending a child's birthday party instead of the big conference he had made it sound like. 'Anyway,' he said awkwardly, moving the conversation on quickly 'Er, try and think of the view of the planet from the Daedalus. I'm sure you couldn't resist taking a look when you first arrived a few months ago.'

'Yes sir, I'll try.' She replied. Again she squeezed her eyes shut. Sheppard looked around, unsure of what to do if she failed again. He dejectedly thought about the situation they were in, teaching mind control was difficult and there were few pilots on Atlantis at the moment with a strong enough ATA gene to make excellent fighter pilots. Magson had seemed like the best. It was imperative that Atlantis had more than one pilot who could be counted on under enemy fire. Pilots like Doctor Beckett were fine for trips to the mainland but Beckett didn't have anywhere near enough skill to be a fighter pilot. This was why Weir had been hoping that he could train Magson and others to protect Atlantis.

Sheppard looked at his watch frustratedly, his patient teacher demeanour starting to crack. He placed a hand on Magson's shoulder 'Look maybe-' Magson jumped in the chair apparently startled by the sudden noise. The Ancient controls flared to life under her shaking hands. Sheppard heard a sharp, clanging noise outside the Jumper. 'What's-' he started to question.

There was a loud explosion that made the Jumper vibrate perilously and he saw a faint glimpse of orange and red fire out of the front Jumper window. The Jumper rocked violently by the shockwave of the blast. Before Sheppard could react he was knocked off of his feet and slammed viscously into the side of the Puddle Jumper which had stopped its journey as quickly as it had started it. He lay still, aching, for a few moments to settle his spinning head. 'Magson you hurt?' He shouted across the Jumper, accidentally taking a deep breath of the smoky air that was rapidly filling the Jumper. He heard no response from the young lieutenant. He quickly strode over to where she lay on the tilted floor next to the pilots chair. He hastily put his fingers to her neck and breathed a sigh of relief as he found a steady pulse. The smoke was getting thicker in the Jumper. Leaning over the unconscious lieutenant he hit the button that should open the roof of the Jumper bay, hoping that it would act as a chimney and get rid of the smoke. The button refused to activate, sparking ferociously as he touched it. He swiftly removed his hand. 'Damn, this was my favourite Jumper too.' Sheppard muttered ruefully.

He hurriedly hoisted Magson over his shoulder; he could feel the heat coming from the raging inferno outside. Placing his jacket sleeve over his mouth, he ran down the ramp of the Puddle Jumper. He quickly scanned the room and worked out the safest route out of the hostile environment that was now the Jumper Bay. He ran as fast as he could, ignoring the heat that was searing his face and the secondary explosions that were sounding louder and louder. Once he was safely outside he lowered Magson to the floor and tapped his earpiece. 'This is Colonel Sheppard, medical team to the Jumper bay.' He ordered throatily, gratefully breathing in the smoke free air deeply. 'Repair team to the Jumper bay.' He ordered again.

'Colonel Sheppard, what the hell is going on up there?' Weir demanded heatedly over the radio.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two:

Weir paced her office quickly, staring worriedly up at the ceiling. All around her, technicians and staff were running about, looking over status reports and readings, trying to figure out what had happened. The city's alarms were blaring loudly over the commotion, letting everyone know it wasn't happy.

Weir ignored everything around her and waited anxiously for Sheppard's reply. What she heard didn't make her feel much better.

'Er… not to worry you Elizabeth, but we may have had a slight accident' Sheppard's sheepish voice swam hesitantly over the radio.

Weir bit her lip and frowned 'I'm not sure I like the sound of that John. Any casualties?'

'Well… Magson's got a pretty big bump on her head but I think she'll be fine. I've already called for a med team.'

Sheppard still sounded nervous and Weir realised he wasn't telling her the whole truth. 'What happened?' she asked. Even though he couldn't see her expression, she narrowed her eyes dangerously.

'It's not _that _bad' Sheppard muttered hurriedly, before mumbling 'a drone caused a bit of damage to the bay, that's all.'

Although he had said it very quickly and not very audibly, Weir still picked up every word. She flared with anger at his attitude 'Colonel, I think you should report to my office _immediately._'

Sheppard signed off quickly with his confirmation and Weir sat down heavily in her chair. '_Here we go again' _she thought sadly. At least this time it might not be Sheppard that caused the problems. _'We can only hope.' _

Two minutes later, the messy haired figure appeared at her doorway, peering nervously around the doorframe like a child. Now that the alarms had been turned off, the normality of sound felt strangely quiet.

Weir frowned as she noticed him arrive and beckoned him into the seat opposite. He sat himself down with none of the usual casualness he used and waited warily for her to speak.

'Well?' she said finally 'what happened?'

Sheppard launched into an explanation about the training session and the accident, making sure to put himself squarely in the blame. He didn't want the poor Lieutenant to feel Weir's wrath. He knew first hand how terrifying she could be.

'…And, I suppose I should have taught her about the weapons controls first so she wouldn't make a mistake like that.'

He fell into silence, waiting for her to speak again. When she finally looked up at him, she gazed into his eyes with a piercing stare 'and what damage has been done to the Jumper Bay?'

Sheppard started playing with his hands 'Ah, well, you know I'm not an engineer so perhaps you should wait for their professional assessment.'

'Colonel' Weir barked sharply, making Sheppard flinch.

'Well, from what I could see, none of the Jumpers were _too _damaged but the wall and bay itself took a pretty big hit. There were wires, sparks, the… usual kind of things in the wrong places.' He tried to keep his voice casual but couldn't help notice the anger that was building up inside of Weir.

'Colonel, how could you be so irresponsible?' she exploded at last 'you know that you're not supposed to go looking for trouble, especially with the Daedalus far away and most likely unable to help us. You should just be thankful that we've been going through a quiet time right now and you'd better hope we don't get anybody knocking on our door.'

Sheppard nodded his head and opened his mouth to talk but Weir glared him into silence 'I'm not finished yet John' she said coldly 'whilst I can understand that accidents do happen and nobody's perfect, you are aware that we need to be very careful in the Puddle Jumpers. Things like guns and electronic equipment we can replace. The ships we can barely comprehend, let alone build ourselves new ones. _And _if we lose the Puddle Jumpers, we lose one of our greatest defences against the Wraith.'

Sheppard watched her nervously, wondering if there was more to come. Weir ran her hand through her hair in exasperation.

The two sat in an uncomfortable silence while they thought what to say next. Just as Weir started to speak again, they were interrupted by a knock on the glass wall of the office. Zelenka looked at the two of them and, as Weir nodded to him, walked into the office and handed her a data pad.

'Preliminary damage reports from Doctor Mckay' he explained to Weir and walked quickly out of the office. As Weir fell to silently reading, Zelenka turned back to Sheppard and muttered 'Rodney's in a foul mood with you know Colonel. Just thought you'd like to know it's not good. And good luck with this' he added, nodding to Weir. With that, he all but ran out of the room.

Sheppard stayed silent as Weir digested the new information. As she finished, she silently handed him the data pad, a dangerous glint in her eyes.

Sheppard scanned the document quickly, his face quickly draining of colour as he read it. Zelenka was right, it wasn't good. He swallowed with difficulty and placed the pad on the desk.

Almost as soon as he had, Weir raised her voice 'I just can't believe you John. Sometimes you astound me as to how little common sense you can have. _'The bay is completely out of action' _according to Rodney. The launch doors both to the gate room and out of Atlantis are completely inoperable and Jumper one is also damaged. If this one can't be fixed, how many Jumpers does that leave us with?'

'I think it's-' Sheppard started.

'It was a rhetorical question John and it doesn't matter. The point is, we are almost defenceless without the Jumpers, ZPM or no. You're always moaning at Mckay and Beckett to be careful, show a little care yourself.'

'I do' Sheppard piped up finally 'It's just that it slipped my mind that she'd be able to activate the weapons so easily.'

Weir sighed 'Well, as the Jumpers and the bay are out of bounds, there's no way any of the expedition will be able to attend the Athosian's celebrations tonight.'

Sheppard's heart sank. Today was Jinto's birthday or, as Teyla called it, his year cycle. His father, Halling, had arranged a great celebration for him and had invited half of Atlantis to attend, Sheppard and Weir included. Beckett had flown Teyla and Ronon over to the mainland two days earlier to prepare for the event and many in Atlantis had been eagerly anticipating it as a break from the normal routine.

Catching his thoughts, Weir nodded 'yes, you will have to explain to the Athosians as to why none of us can make it and apologise to Jinto as well. Carson isn't going to be happy that he's going to be away from the infirmary for a long time either, seeing as Sergeant Stackhouse flew the Jumper back here. And' she added, taking a deep breath 'you'll have to post a bulletin to the city, explaining the event's cancellation.'

She finally finished and turned her head back to examining the data pad. Sheppard sat in stunned silence, watching her. She had never been as harsh with him before as she had just then. He felt a twinge of anger even amidst the guilt. It had been an accident! She didn't have to bite his head off about it.

He started to tell her so when she locked eyes with him and glared ferociously. 'The best action for you to take right now is silence Colonel' she growled 'You're dismissed. I'll think about what to do with this later.'

She looked at him pointedly and activated her headset to organise the repair crews, leaving a disgruntled Sheppard to leave her office without her notice.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three:

Sheppard slowly walked away from the infirmary feeling more tense then he would care to admit. As soon as Weir had dismissed him he had been called to the infirmary to be checked over by a Doctor. After being subjected to a thorough examination he was finally able to leave. As he walked down to the ancient teleporter, Sheppard clenched his fists tightly as he remembered his telling off by Weir. It had been quite embarrassing but he could understand Weir's reaction as it was the same as his own. Jumpers were a very important part of the cities defence even with a functioning ZPM. He walked down the corridor in the east pier making his way to the sparring room. He would have to apologise to Jinto but he would rather unwind first.

Once he arrived he picked up the sparring sticks that had been left in Teyla and his last training session. He carefully swung the sticks around as he had been taught by Teyla. He didn't often practice, much to Teyla's disappointment, as he found that in most battles that his P90 was much more effective. However, he found that it was an excellent way of reliving stress. He slowly went through the 'kata like' movements deep in thought over his altercation with Weir. He had still been quite shook up during the meeting but he still thought that it was right taking the blame for the explosion. Weir may have dealt with Magson harshly and Sheppard felt sorry for the poor girl. Magson had been startled by something and hindsight told him that it might have been better to turn the weapons systems off before he started training but there was little point in lamenting now. Sheppard brought the sticks down viscously hitting the floor with a thump. Sheppard felt the tension ease from his body and wiggled his shoulders appreciatively. It was time to think positively, he wouldn't be seeing much of McKay anytime soon who would be busy fixing the Jumper Bay. He was sure there were other bonuses that he hadn't thought of yet. Sheppard was now feeling much better and though still slightly hacked of at Elizabeth he could now see that he would have reacted the same if anyone had dared to damage his precious Jumpers.

Sheppard strolled into the control room and smiled weakly at Weir who was waiting patiently for him. _Well _he thought wryly _I said I understood her reaction, not that I forgave her. _

'Colonel Sheppard, thank you for joining us. We have established a connection to the mainland.' Weir said shortly. Sheppard grimaced; forgiveness had to work both ways, in this case, apparently. He walked over to the consol that Weir was standing by and nodded to show that he was ready. She tapped one of the transparent buttons on the ancient device.

'Jinto, are you there?' Sheppard asked faintly.

'Colonel Sheppard!' Jinto exclaimed elatedly. 'When are you coming? You promised to tell some of your stories.'

Sheppard frowned sadly. 'Well Jinto there's a slight problem. You see I kinda destroyed the Jumper Bay and there's no way to get to the mainland anymore. I'm really sorry.' He said inadequately.

'An accident? Was anyone hurt?' Jinto asked hurriedly.

'Not seriously.' Sheppard answered. 'Look Jinto I promise to make it up to you. As soon as the damage has been mended I will come over and tell you as many stories as you like. You know McKay he will have it fixed in no time.'

'That's alright Colonel I will look forward to it.' Jinto said brightly.

'As will I, Jinto.' Weir said, joining the conversation. 'Now could you put Teyla on for me please?'

'Yes Doctor Weir?' Teyla asked.

'Did you hear what Colonel Sheppard explained to Jinto?'

'Yes I did, is there anything we can do to help?'

'No, the problem is that you, Ronon and Doctor Beckett will be stranded on the mainland for the foreseeable future.' Sheppard looked down guiltily at his military boots. 'All of the teams' missions will be allocated to other off-world teams. I will be checking Rodney's progress soon so I will get back to you. Have fun at the party.' Weir said.

'Yes Doctor Weir, I am sorry that you will be missing Jinto's year cycle celebration.' Teyla said.

'Yes we all are, we'll keep you apprised Teyla.' Weir signed out.

Sheppard stood awkwardly wondering what he should do next, there was always the paperwork in his office to do, he supposed glumly. Luckily he was saved by the radio. 'Colonel Sheppard, this is Doctor Langrish you asked me to inform you when Lieutenant Magson regained consciousness. She is asking for you.' Said a female voice.

Sheppard looked over at Weir who motioned for him to go. 'Tell her I will be right there.' Sheppard said into his radio, he turned around and quickly marched to the infirmary.

'I am so sorry sir!' Magson blurted out just as Sheppard approached the bed.

'It's alright Lieutenant, it was my fault I should have turned the weapons systems off. I've already explained it to Doctor Weir so you just concentrate of getting well.' Sheppard told her.

'It's only a slight concussion Sir. The doctor said she would release me in the morning if there are no complications.' She explained. There was an awkward pause and Sheppard shuffled his feet, thinking of leaving before it became more uncomfortable.

'Erm, Colonel, Doctor Langrish explained what happened to the Jumper Bay-'

'I've already said that it wasn't your fault.' Sheppard interrupted.

'I know what you said sir, that's not what I was going to say. Thank you for saving me. The doctor told me that the Jumper Bay was filled with smoke so thanks.'

Sheppard cleared his throat uneasily, he never took gratitude easily. 'Well I wouldn't be doing my job if I left you there; now would I?' He said, smiling down on Magson.

'Colonel Sheppard.' Weir's voice piped into his ear through the radio.

'Go ahead.' Sheppard said restlessly.

'Could you report to my office at your earliest convenience?' Weir said.

Sheppard wondered how Elizabeth could always make orders seem like requests, as if he had any choice about the matter.

'I'm on my way.' Sheppard replied.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter four:

'Well, John' Weir started, smoothing the sheets of paper on her desk, trying to reduce the tension that was building up in the room.

Across from her, Sheppard sat a little straighter in his chair and looked down at the desk as if in anticipation for his punishment. Elizabeth sighed and decided to get on with it. Looking up at him, she gave him a hidden look of pity and then hardened her resolve.

'John, as much as I understand the occurrence of accidents in the city, I can't tolerate accidents from the head of the military that could have been avoided!' she realised her voice was rising and she struggled to keep herself calm, glad that her outward expression remained stoical 'I would probably have been able to be lenient had it been one of your team mates that you were teaching. They, at least have experience to counter your stupidity! But Lieutenant Magson is one of our new transfers, fresh from the air force academy. She isn't to know just how dangerous this job can be. In these kinds of situations, you need to take every precaution or your carelessness may lose us more than a few difficulties.'

She finished her tirade and sat there, staring at him, smouldering angrily. She watched Sheppard keep tight-lipped and realised he wasn't going to react to her rage. The calm part of her admired him for his control. With a start, she realised he was watching her, a cautious questioning look on his face and she cleared her throat uncomfortably.

'Anyway, given that it was an accident and that you have already apologised to everyone involved, I'm not going to give you as severe a punishment as I am inclined to' a thought of constant Mckay assistance came to her head and she could see that Sheppard was thinking the same thing 'I know that I could force you to do that paperwork that's been mounting for ages' the pair shared a brief smile as they locked eyes, but it was quickly lost as Weir continued 'as such, I feel that it is best if I send you on the mission to M61-847 with Lorne and his team. With your team otherwise occupied, I think it's best you take command of another type of mission.'

Sheppard stared at her in horror, his initial relief at an easy punishment changing to pain and shock. She could almost hear him thinking _She wouldn't really do this to me, would she? _

Ignoring the pleading, puppy-dog eyes he was throwing at her she carried on her explanation 'M61-847 is a farming colony that has a substantial amount of rice in their harvest. Preliminary contact shows them to be willing to trade with us. There will be three military personnel, yourself included, accompanying the diplomatic scientist and the nutrition scientist. It is not a long mission and I expect you to return by 1900 hours unless the natives wish you to stay overnight.'

She paused, allowing him time to speak but he stayed stubbornly silent. Her feeling of victory dampened slightly, but she ignored it completely and concluded calmly 'You and your team will be embarking in an hour John. I suggest you make your preparations and meet the team in the gate room later.'

She nodded to him to show the meeting was over and he stood up stiffly, keeping his frustration tightly shut. With a nod and a small salute he pushed back his chair and walked swiftly out, a dark look already forming on his face.

She sighed again. Victory was a two edged sword.

Weir walked tentatively through the doors of the Jumper Bay, toward the large commotion of raised voices. Following the noise, she walked up to the mass of scientists, who were surrounding a charred jumper and arguing with each other.

In the centre of the group, she found the person she had come to see. With a sigh, she realised that he was the instigator of the arguments.

'No, no, no' Mckay complained, tapping his computer screen angrily, which was attached to wires hanging out of the wall 'If you cross these wires, the whole system will short-circuit!' Weir saw him throw his hands up in frustration and glare at the assembled scientists.

'Rodney, calm down and look at this rationally' came the ever-composed voice of Zelenka 'Perhaps if we split into smaller groups then there will be less need for arguments.' The other scientists nodded, eager to get away from Mckay.

'Yes, but then I would have to keep repeating myself to these imbeciles' Mckay muttered 'this way I only have to say things once.

'I'm sure then can manage Rodney. Just let them do their jobs.'

'Fine' Mckay grumbled, finally noticing Weir 'What can I do for you Elizabeth. If your wishing for any joy on the situation, I'm afraid I can't give it to you. Sheppard's screwed the Jumper Bay up royal.'

'Well don't worry Rodney. Be assured that John's being punished heavily for his mistake' Elizabeth said sweetly.

Catching her attitude, Mckay grew interested 'What did you make him do?' But Weir stayed quiet smiling mysteriously and Mckay gave up.

Weir turned to Zelenka and after asking for a status report on repairs, was surprised to see some trepidation appear on his face. 'I'm sorry Doctor Weir but things aren't progressing very well at all. With our current level of progress, I would expect repairs to be completed in about a week. At that's to a level that Jumpers can be operational in and out of Atlantis again.' He shook his head sadly.

Anxiety gnawed at Weir and she sighed. This was not the news she wanted to hear. 'I understand Radek. It can't be helped if that is the case' she looked at her watch and smiled at the two scientists 'I'm sorry but I have to say goodbye to Lorne and his _team. _If you'll excuse me.'

Lorne and a member of his team were already in the gate room, checking over their P90's a taking the rest of their weapons from the armoury staff. As Weir entered the room, the two scientists also entered, chatting amiably to each other and comparing notes. They smiled up at Weir and she nodded in reply.

'_What a surprise' _she thought sarcastically _'Sheppard isn't here yet.' _Lorne walked up to her in the control room and nodded down to his team 'Is this going to be enough in terms of security ma'am? I don't mean to question you but one to each scientist does seem to be a little insufficient.'

Weir smiled mischievously, a rarity in front of the city's population 'Oh don't worry Major, you won't be going alone. You have another man joining your group.' Her eyes glinted in amusement as realisation dawned quickly on Lorne's face.

'He's not going to be impressed about that ma'am. If I may ask, why isn't he here yet? Shall I go find him?'

Weir shook her head, suddenly serious 'he's probably acting like a child right now, postponing the inevitable. He really doesn't want to go. This was the best way to make him see how serious this was without actually punishing him.' She shook her head sadly 'He'll get over it soon enough.'

Lorne smiled I don't know. First he's grounded because of the accident and now he's being sent on a babysitting job. I guess he's thinking that this is a nightmare right about now.'


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five:

Sheppard moodily strode up the stairs to the Jumper Bay from his room. He was all geared up for his mission but didn't want to seem eager by arriving early. He was lost in his own grumpy thoughts; just when he thought he could move on and forgive Elizabeth, she goes and does this! A trading mission for rice! He couldn't think of anything worse in two galaxies, hell he would actually rather work through that pile of paperwork in his office. Maybe he should just take himself off duty again, last time he had Colonel Caldwell had taken over his position and helpfully cleared his in-tray. True he had been busy turning into a bug thingy but the lack of paperwork on his recovery had almost made the pain and the near-death worth it. Sheppard shuddered as he remembered his actions during that time and the way he had looked. _Well I did say almost worth it!_ He thought dryly. But now he had to face something even worse.

The Jumper Bay door slid open as he approached and Sheppard was almost overpowered by the strong burnt smell that occupied the room. 'Ah, Colonel Sheppard how nice of you to join us.' A sarcastic voice said. 'Come to do even more damage? If that was even possible!'

Sheppard sighed and approached the centre of the Bay. 'Hello Rodney, how's it going?'

'Well as I was called away from my important ZPM research to sort out your mess, how do you think it is going?'

'Like you can talk! Didn't you leave one of the Jumpers parked on the bottom of the ocean floor?' Sheppard asked innocently, purposefully goading the scientist. _Well everyone knows pissed Rodney is so much more fun to be around than any other Rodney! _Sheppard thought happily.

'What!' McKay said incredulously. 'What has that got to do with anything and anyway it was hardly my fault, Radek was the one who 'fixed' it!'

'Do not bring me into this please.' Doctor Zelenka said quietly not looking up from his computer. He didn't dignify McKay's remark with a response. That's what Sheppard liked about the little guy, he wasn't afraid to admit when he had made mistakes unlike other scientists that Sheppard knew. As soon as McKay was safe after the accident with the Puddle Jumper, Zelenka had apologised profusely and had even given McKay a large stash of chocolate as a present.

'So how bad is the damage?' Sheppard asked brightly, waiting for the tirade that would follow.

'It's always the same with you military types. Don't worry about what you blow up and then look to the scientists to fix it just like that.' Sheppard sat down on the floor next to Zelenka. _This could be a long rant!_ Sheppard thought making himself comfortable. '… more complex than your little brain could ever comprehend.' McKay continued. Sheppard's eyes glazed over as he stared at McKay, in full outburst, making his customary wild hand movements gesturing towards the broken Jumper. '… and even you know how powerful drones are. Atlantis isn't invincible you know…' Sheppard looked at Zelenka who smiled sympathetically at him. '…lucky you didn't destroy all the Jumpers as well. Not that you can even use them anymore because of what you did to the control mechanism.' McKay finally paused for breath and Sheppard quickly took his chance unsure of when the next opportunity to interrupt would arise.

'You know, I'm really sorry Rodney and I'm sure you and Radek can fix it. You're the best scientists that Earth has to offer.' Sheppard said flatteringly, grinning cheekily.

It appeared to mollify McKay slightly. 'That is true, well about me anyway, I don't know if I would put Radek at the same level as me though.' He said brashly.

Zelenka looked up, ignoring McKay's comments as usual. 'You know Rodney; we do have a deadline to meet. Doctor Weir will not be impressed if you did not get the repairs done on time because you were too busy chatting.' Zelenka said in his heavily accented voice.

'He's right, for once, you should go Sheppard you're distracting me.' McKay demanded forcibly.

'Alright fine, I only came to say goodbye anyway. I'm off to M61-847 to support Major Lorne with an important trading opportunity.' Sheppard said impressively. 'Elizabeth doesn't seem to think Lorne can cope without me!'

McKay looked at Sheppard blankly for a moment and Sheppard could almost see the cogs turning in McKay's brain. 'Isn't that the world with all the rice? Ha, Elizabeth has got you carting rice around like a donkey. Well have fun there Sheppard, I will be thinking of you and laughing whilst you're gone.' McKay said mockingly.

Sheppard smiled snidely at McKay's comments and turned and left the burnt Jumper Bay.

Sheppard was the last to arrive in the gate room. Lorne and his team were already assembled in front of the gate.

'Colonel.' Acknowledged Lorne. 'I'm sure you'll love this world. There's a cute kid called Callen that I'm sure you'll like.' Sheppard nodded moodily.

Along with Lorne there was one other soldier, called Sergeant Miller if he remembered correctly, and two scientists who were presumably there to look at the rice or some other boring job. Sheppard sighed as Weir finished walking down the stairs and came over to the five men. 'Right team, have fun off-world and bring us back lots of rice.' She said. Sheppard wondered if he had imagined the wicked glint in her eyes when she looked at him. 'Dial it up.' She shouted up to the control room. The stargate quickly locked the co-ordinates into place and the wormhole whooshed into existence. 'Colonel Sheppard, make contact in one hour time to check progress.' Sheppard nodded and made his way through the gate with the rest of his team. Just before he stepped through he thought he heard Weir's voice say 'be safe' before he was dematerialised in the wormhole.

'Well this is nice.' Sheppard said once he was re-materialised on the new planet. 'Trees and more trees.'

'The village is a ten minute walk to the north sir.' Major Lorne informed him.

'Well that's gonna be pleasant on the way back with all the bags of rice.' Sheppard moaned. 'If only we could have brought a Puddle Jumper!' Sheppard said wryly. He listened carefully as he thought he heard a faint disturbance. Lorne was about to respond when Sheppard motioned for him to be quite. Sheppard followed it with more hand movements ordering Lorne and Sergeant Miller to fan out. Sheppard heard more rustling from the trees. _That's why I hate trees; you never know what's hiding in them. _Sheppard thought bitterly. Sheppard took the safety off his P90 and heard Lorne and Sergeant Miller do the same behind him.

Sheppard approached the tree line cautiously. There was a cry from behind him from one of the scientists and Sheppard whipped around, distracted, to see what was wrong with them. He soon had his own problems to deal with as he felt an almost unbearable pain in his leg. He stifled a groan and looked down; something sharp had impaled itself through Sheppard's left thigh. 'Damn' Sheppard cursed as he landed awkwardly on the hard ground, his leg unable to take his weight.

The air around the gate was full of swiftly flying spears in the direction of Sheppard and his team. Luckily Sheppard seemed to be the only one hit that he could see. One of the scientists was huddled behind the DHD with Miller in front of him, covering the scientist to keep him safe. 'Dial it up Sergeant.' Sheppard ordered loudly from his position on the ground, thirty feet away. Sheppard continued to fire his P90 frantically into the woods.

Lorne was heading over to help him up but Sheppard waved him away. 'Cover Miller.' He ordered shortly over the noise of the automatic weapons, struggling to rise off the ground. He hobbled to his feet, firing his weapon randomly, still unsure where the hostiles were. He checked to see whether Lorne had followed his orders and was gratified to see him standing next to the gate which had almost completed dialling. Sheppard tried to take a step forward but found the drag of the long spear too painful on the deep wound in his leg. He was sure that it had done major damage; it was bleeding slowly but steadily at the moment as the spearhead was acting as a stopper for the wound. He carefully snapped the spear off near the entry wound keeping the injury plugged. He was grateful that Major Lorne's cover fire had stopped the flurry of spears in Sheppard's direction whilst he was otherwise occupied as otherwise he would have surely been hit by now. He clumsily hopped towards the gate and motioned for the rest to go through the open stargate.

Sheppard saw one scientist run through the gate and hoped that the other was already safely through as he didn't see him anywhere on this side of the gate. Lorne and Miller stayed continuing their firing over his head, waiting for him to make his slow progress over to them. He could now hear yelling behind him and assumed that the hostile were following him but didn't really want to waste time by looking. A spear whipped past his ear narrowly missing him, so he sped up his ungainly limping. The spears were becoming more regular and they were now aiming at the two soldiers at the gate. Sheppard watched helplessly as Miller was stuck down by a well aimed spear. Lorne was forced to take shelter behind the DHD. Sheppard twisted round and resumed firing his gun. The mob in front of him was almost upon him, there was no way he would ever have been able to outrun them. Another spear brushed past him but they didn't seem to want to kill him, _that or they are really quite bad at throwing them_ he thought dryly. Sheppard finally ran out of ammo and tried to quickly reload. Whilst he was doing this he saw movement out the corner of his eye. He looked up and prepared to fire but it was too late. What looked like the mob leader, Sheppard assumed this due to his large girth and rather fetching fur coat, fired what Sheppard wretchedly realised was a wraith stunner at point blank range. He had no time to even move a muscle the bright burst of light hit Sheppard squarely in the chest and he slumped to the floor. The whole world was black before his head hit the ground.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter six:

Weir sighed as she sat in her office. She hated this feeling; the feeling that somehow, Sheppard had got himself in yet another predicament. Luckily, most of the time, her fears were unfounded but when A-R1 got themselves into trouble, they out-did themselves every time. It always seemed that Sheppard returned from off-world with a new array of injuries that he always loved to show off.

The group had left barely ten minutes ago, but the gnawing in her stomach started almost as soon as they had left. She tried to tell herself that it was stupid, that a simple diplomatic mission for rice couldn't possibly be that dangerous but she couldn't shake the foreboding sense that something was wrong.

That was why it came as little surprise when, two minutes later, the gate's green glow came flashing into the room as the off-world co-ordinates locked into place. Even so, she jumped out of her chair and sped into the control room, stopping abruptly by the D.H.D technician's chair.

'Report? Have we received an identification code?' she demanded, looking down at the young man.

'No ma'am, nothing yet. I'm not reading…. hold on, I'm receiving Sergeant Miller's I.D.C' the technician replied hurriedly, moving his hands over the console at a lightning speed.

'Lower the shield' Weir consented, moving away from him and walking towards the top of the stairs quickly. The sound of the shield falling behind her echoed in her ears as she swung round the corner and faced the gate.

The security force had already taken their place and were waiting ready and alert for an immediate response. They didn't wait long. One of the scientists came thundering through the gate, almost stumbling as he slowed down too quickly, looking behind him in fear.

Weir was at his side in an instant, helping him sit down in the gate room steps and calling for a medical team. The scientist was breathing heavily and kept looking up at the gate worriedly.

Weir bit her lip, fighting between the want of information and the worry of pushing the poor man. Finally the former won the battle.

'Doctor? What happened? Where are the rest of the team?' she stopped suddenly, realising she was bombarding him with too many questions.

The scientist looked up at her and smiled at her weakly, catching his breath 'I don't know ma'am, the others should be right behind me. We were attacked. With spears, I think. Colonel Sheppard was hit by one but he was still fighting when I went through. They should be here.'

The medical team arrived in the gate room and immediately removed the scientist from the steps and on to a gurney before rattling out of the room. Weir watched after, sparing a moment to pray for the scientist's health.

Turning her attention back to the gate, she again had a short wait, as Lorne came stumbling backwards through the gate, helping a barely-conscious Sergeant Miller with him and letting off a round of his P90.

The couple moved a few metres from the gate and collapsed against the ground. The remaining medical staff rushed to their aid and Weir knelt to the ground beside them, checking the two soldiers over.

She was about to ask if they were okay when the gate shut down. Silence was left in the gate room as everyone looked at the gate in shock, as if still expecting their two missing men to arrive before them.

Only Lorne did not look surprised. As a now unconscious Miller was wheeled off to the infirmary, he looked up from where he was sitting on the floor and sighed heavily. When he shook his head, she immediately ordered the soldiers to stand down.

Leading him towards the infirmary, she took one last look at the gate and, after setting the control room on high alert, walked away from the gate room.

Weir watched as Doctor Langrish came through the O.R doors towards them, a small smile on her face 'Sergeant Miller's going to be fine. I managed to stop the bleeding and patch him up nicely but he'll be grounded for a while. The other two will be fine. They didn't suffer any physical injuries but I'd advise that they stay off-duty for at least 24 hours.' She nodded to them and walked back to the O.R.

Next to Weir, Major Lorne was sitting on an infirmary bed in silence watching the theatre room. Weir sat down next to him and took a deep breath 'Well, Major. What happened out there?'

Lorne sighed and looked down at his hands, before looking Weir in the eyes and becoming completely professional 'We were ambushed ma'am, by unknown hostiles. Colonel Sheppard was struck through the leg by a spear. We laid down cover fire and tried to get back to the gate. Doctor Greenwood was hit in the chest, there's no chance that he could have survived. I'm sorry ma'am.'

Weir was momentarily thrown by the news and she bowed her head in a brief lament. They'd have to recover his body for a funeral and tell his family. 'What of Colonel Sheppard?' she asked hesitantly.

'Just before we went through, he was hit by a wraith stunner but by that time I couldn't go back for him. It looks like they wanted him alive though so a rescue mission's definitely possible.'

Weir nodded, processing the information thoughtfully 'I'll authorise a MALP, but other than that, I can't send a team without at least knowing what's happening on the other side.'

Lorne nodded 'I understand ma'am. I'll put together a team just in case.'

'No Lorne' Weir said sharply 'You're on stand down for 24 hours, didn't you hear? You can put together a team if you would like but you can't be on it.'

Lorne nodded unhappily 'Yes ma'am.'

The gate room was packed. A lot of people had come to see what had happened to their CO. Lorne's rescue team were prepped and ready to go and the MALP was standing by in front of the gate.

Weir's heart beat wildly in her chest, even though she maintained her calm exterior. Beside her, Major Lorne was watching the screen intently waiting for the MALP to relay information as soon as it was through.

As the wormhole whooshed into existence, Weir immediately sent the MALP through the gate and stood right next to him, peering over his shoulder nervously.

After a moments pause, the technician confirmed 'we have established contact ma'am.'

The two stared at the screen as silence rained the gate room. After a small wait, the static cleared and the D.H.D of the planet came into view. And next to it….

Weir gave an audible gasp as she saw Doctor Greenwood's body draped over the stone steps, his eyes sightless and staring. The clearing was calm and deserted and she hesitated, wishing to send a team to retrieve his body.

In the corner of the shot, a sudden movement made her focus on the screen again. Major Lorne tensed as he saw a group of spear-wielding men approach the MALP, their eyes narrowed in suspicion.

Weir watched as the men approached the gate pointing their spears at the new piece of technology. As they disappeared from view, the technician moved the camera to track their positions. Just as soon as he had soon as he had done so, the hostiles leaped back in fright and immediately became enraged. Leaping forwards again, they attacked the MALP ferociously until the signal returned to static and the Atlanteans could not see what was going on any more.

Weir sighed and ordered the gate to be shut down before leaning over the balcony.

'Rescue team, stand down. There will be no mission.' she ordered, turning her back as she did so and walking to her office.

Lorne followed right behind her 'Sheppard was nowhere in that clearing which means he isn't dead. Obviously those men wanted him for something. It might be difficult but we can take those men at the gate.' He looked at her earnestly but she shook her head nonetheless.

'No Major, I would not knowingly send anyone into that situation, especially for just one man, no matter how important he is. Look at what they did to Doctor Greenwood. I can't send anyone to stand up to that level of ferocity. We'll have to look at other alternatives to get Colonel Sheppard back.'

Lorne paused for a long time. Weir knew that, as current ranking military officer, Lorne could override her decision and call for a military situation. But, he simply nodded and pounded the rail with his fist.

Weir activated her comm. dreading the response she would get from Mckay 'Rodney, come in this is Weir.'

McKay's voice crackled over the radio 'Elizabeth, you are aware of the importance of my work. I would have thought that you would have enough sense to let me work in peace and-'

'Rodney' Weir interrupted; her throat catching slightly 'how long until you can get a jumper through the gate?'

Mckay snorted loudly 'Not any time soon. Sheppard did a lot of damage and we have to replace charred circuits, which isn't as easy as it sounds. By the way, is he back yet? He'd better have lots of rice; I'm starving!'

'Rodney, there's been a big problem and Sheppard's in trouble' she looked up at the Jumper Bay 'I hate to say this but our only hope to save him is to get a Jumper in the air.'


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven:

Sheppard rapidly opened his eyes at the sound of the bolt being released from his prison cell. He struggled upright from where he was resting in the corner of the dingy room; ready to make his move if the opportunity arose. The flimsy wooden door to the jail would have never kept him shut in if he was uninjured but as he was, there was no point lamenting.

The door was opened and three burly men marched in with their dreaded spears, Sheppard clutched his still weeping wound in memory of what one of those spears had done to his poor leg._ Well_ _it will make a lovely war wound to show everyone, I'm sure Elizabeth will love to see it when I get back! _Sheppard thought positively. He wasn't quite sure how he was going to escape on a leg that wouldn't hold his weight but he was Lieutenant Colonel John Sheppard! He had survived Afghanistan, he had survived the wraith countless times and he had survived his worst nightmare twice! He shivered at the memory of the god-awful bug incidents! Now, if he could survive all of that, he could survive these Neanderthal men with spears! Hell, if he was going to die, it would be whilst saving the world or at least whilst saving Atlantis!

Sheppard finished his mental pep-talk and focused on the door, waiting for the chief primitive to come into Sheppard's humble abode. Round two between them had ended a few hours ago in a draw, Sheppard had a few more injuries to show Elizabeth because of it but he wasn't dead so, in his books that meant he hadn't lost. Sheppard had decided that round one didn't count in the tally because using wraith stunners when Sheppard was unarmed was very unsporting and against the rules that Sheppard had made up in the long wait in the dark, cold cell.

'So off-worlder, you have another chance to tell me what you know, or be ready to face my wrath.' The tribal chief ordered.

_Round three begins!_ Sheppard thought grimly. 'Hey haven't you got any food or water for me?' He asked, putting on a disappointed voice. 'Have you never heard that foods the way to a man's heart? Or the way to information you want, that he might have.' He said provokingly.

The chief grunted angrily and waved the spear he was holding around, dangerously close to Sheppard's vulnerable head. 'Hey, careful with that! You can't torture me if you knock my head off, can you?' Sheppard suggested helpfully.

The chief spat at Sheppard's feet. 'Do not talk unless ordered. Tell me what you were doing in this village? What were you doing with those that were in charge here before me?'

'Making friends.' Sheppard answered. There must have been some kind of coup in the village or maybe another tribe had attacked. At least he knew that he was in the village next to the stargate. The chief looked down furiously at him and Sheppard flinched with the knowledge of what was coming. The chief nodded to one of his lackey's who took his spear out of the embers of the fire outside the cell door and approached Sheppard. He knew from his last meeting with the spear that it was blunt but it didn't help at all. Sheppard screamed as he was jabbed in the belly with the spear. It burnt his skin on contact and the nerve endings protested viciously in Sheppard's body. The pain receded slightly as the spear was taken away but Sheppard knew from the other similar burns on his body that the pain would stay with him constantly until it healed. He spared a quick thought for all the cows out there that were branded in a comparable fashion. It was actually quite cruel.

'Now, tell me what you were doing in the village, were you providing them with the power of the ancestors?' The chief asked gruffly.

Sheppard's mind raced, _power of the ancestors? _Times like these he really needed Teyla or Ronon to translate the native speak. The chief obviously sensed Sheppard's confusion as he motioned to one of the burly men who quickly strode out of the cell, returning with Sheppard's P90. Boy was he glad it was out of bullets, his gun could have caused more damage than the branding could ever achieve. 'This is the power of the ancestors, how else could you wield such power. Do not deny knowledge as we saw you using it, many of my people left this world to join the mighty ancestors due to your actions today.'

Sheppard tried to decipher the chief's words. 'Oh, do you mean they died? They did attack us. What did you expect? One of my men was hit by your clowns, I don't know if Miller is alive or dead.'

The chief smiled gleefully. 'We hit more than one of your men; my men are very gifted with the spear, the best of any of the northern tribes. The man brandishing the other power of the ancestors was hit; and the one with the magic eyes of the ancestors we left for his soul to escape to the next world. See off-worlder, we do have compassion.' He said to Sheppard.

Sheppard tried to rise to his feet angrily 'Are you telling me that Doctor Greenwood is dead? How is that compassionate? He didn't attack anyone!' He shouted bitterly, knowing that he had failed in his duty again to protect the civilians. The lackey again thrust the spear into Sheppard's ribs and Sheppard moaned in pain, collapsing to the floor.

The chief sniggered at Sheppard's distress and turned to leave the room. 'Think about this pain before you resist us again as it will only get worse for you, we have the ancestors on our side. Sheppard shut his eyes tightly to ward off the waves of pain ignoring the discomfort he felt when breathing. There was no way that he was unlucky enough to have broken a rib! Sheppard sighed as the pain receded and heard the door bolt behind his tormentors. _These people really have an ancestor complex! They're completely obsessed with the ancients. _Sheppard thought incredulously. _Maybe they need a life! _Sheppard cautiously lay down on his uninjured side, facing the door for safety. The last thing he needed was to be caught unawares. The pain from the burns was fogging his mind and his left leg was growing numb, which Sheppard vaguely realised wasn't a good sign.

He fitfully dozed during the night, waking every so often with the cold that was seeping into his bones and the thirst that was almost overwhelming him. He hadn't drunk anything since this morning but he knew from experience that humans could last a few more days without water yet; his injuries would probably kill him first he thought positively. He heard the bustle around him that told him that the next day had started. There was no change in the unlit cell however and no noise that suggested anyone approached. _Maybe they've forgotten about me. _He thought hopefully. He managed to pull himself into a sitting position and checked the wound on his leg. The shaft was still firmly in place stopping the blood-flow but it also kept the wound from healing as it should. He really needed to get Doctor Beckett to look at his leg. It was serious now, any longer and he might lose the leg. It was a grim thought.

The noise from the street outside changed. Sheppard heard the screams of desperate people and what sounded like the whining of a spacecraft passed overhead. Could that be a rescue team from Atlantis, McKay was good but could he have fixed the Jumper Bay in twenty-four hours? The screams reached a higher pitch outside and Sheppard frowned. The villagers would have no reason to be that afraid of any team from Atlantis. Someone fumbled with the bolt to the cell-door and the chief hurried in looking devastated. 'The wraith are here, what evil have you brought onto us?' He demanded.

'What did I do?' Sheppard asked. 'The wraith cull all worlds, they aren't here because of me.'

'You have cursed us and the ancestors have deserted us.' The chief said, hugging his fur coat around himself comfortingly. 'You will have one last chance to save yourself, what powers did you give those that were in charge of this village before us?'

'I told you already, nothing. We don't trade those powers, well not now anyway. We were trading for the rice from the harvest, that's all.' Sheppard said frustrated.

'You lie; we need the powers you bestowed to stop the wraith.'

'The only powers here were in that gun you brought in earlier and it won't work unless you give it to me with the rest of my things.' Sheppard explained.

'Never would I do that, you are not to be trusted. If you refuse to tell me about these powers I will leave you here to be fed on by the wraith whilst I escape with the rest of my people into the woods.'

'There are no powers!' Sheppard shouted.

'Then you leave me no choice. The wraith may stop once they have the one who cursed us.' The chief pulled out the wraith stunner and shot Sheppard who sat helpless on the floor. Again the world around him faded from his notice.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight:

The noise in the conference room was deafening as everyone present tried to make their views heard. The soldiers and scientists that had shown up for the meeting were all arguing and it became clear to Weir that she wasn't going to be able to resolve this problem easily.

Finally, she lost the remainder of her patience and loudly said '_IF I COULD HAVE ALL OF YOUR ATTENTIONS_.' The tone of her voice was so sharp that the entire room fell silent immediately and everyone, soldiers and scientists alike, turned to face her. Behind her, Lorne was smiling weakly, amused by their reactions.

'Thank you' Weir said, more calmly 'we all need to be calm about this and think about the situation rationally.'

One of the soldiers stepped forward. As Weir nodded to him, he immediately started talking. 'We can't leave Colonel Sheppard to die out there ma'am. I'm sorry that Doctor Greenwood's dead and I know it's dangerous but the Colonel's saved out butts so may times, we have to at least try to return the favour.'

One of the scientists shook his head 'I don't agree. Colonel Sheppard wouldn't want us to waste more lives on the attempt at rescuing him. I'm sure he's been in worse scrapes. We'll just have to wait until the Jumper bay is fixed and then we can go and assist him.' The other scientists nodded, voicing their agreement.

Another soldier stood by his comrade 'but Major Lorne said that Sheppard was injured. Perhaps if we wait, it'll be too late to save him. I vote we go now' the other soldiers all voiced their agreement as well 'besides, it's not as if we're risking you're lives to rescue him. We've made this decision ourselves and we're prepared to go in there.'

Weir sighed and held up her hand for silence Lorne looked at her hopefully 'ma'am? Shall I assemble the team?'

'No' Weir replied, looking at the crestfallen looks on the soldiers' faces and the uncertain faces of the scientists 'I'm sorry but I agree with Doctor Bateman' the scientist nodded weakly 'Shepard wouldn't want to risk your lives and I couldn't even think of putting you into an uncertain mission like that. We'll just have to wait until we can launch a jumper. So, I want every scientist available to report to Doctor Mckay to see how they can be of assistance. And Major' she said, turning to Lorne 'have your team prepped and ready for immediate departure.'

Everyone nodded their understanding and the room began to clear, people talking quietly in groups about the decision that had been made. Just as Weir was about to follow behind them, she heard a small voice behind her.

'Um, Doctor Weir can I talk to you for a moment?' Weir turned around and was surprised to see Lieutenant Magson sitting in a chair.

'Should you be out of the infirmary yet Lieutenant?' Weir asked incredulously, staring at her with her eyebrows raised.

Magson blushed sheepishly 'well, doctor Langrish was being a bit unfair, keeping me grounded like that and I wanted to come to the meeting. Besides I feel fine.'

'Hmm' said Doctor Weir disbelievingly 'what can I do for you before you return to the infirmary then?'

Magson accepted the order without complaint and Weir felt herself thinking of how Sheppard would complain. With a pang she realised that she might never have to deal with it again and she felt tears spring to her eyes. Ignoring it, she turned her attention to what Magson was saying.

'And the Doctor did say it was a mild concussion. So I thought, what with everyone needed and such, if I could join the rescue team in retrieving Colonel Sheppard? I know I'm new here but Colonel Sheppard has helped me settle in here and I'd like to repay a favour.'

Weir felt a bristle of jealousy which she abruptly smothered 'as much as I appreciate your commitment and enthusiasm, I'm afraid I'm hesitant to allow anyone to go, let alone one who is injured, no matter how small the injury. I don't think Colonel Sheppard would be happy if he knew I let you go either.'

Magson nodded, visibly disappointed and Weir had a small twinge of sympathy 'If you want though, when he gets back, I'm sure he'll appreciate a certain sandwich delivered to him, especially if he ends up in the infirmary!'

With a mysterious smile, Weir left the conference, hearing Magson utter a quiet, amused 'yes ma'am!'

'Radio link established ma'am' the technician confirmed to Weir as she stood in the control room.

'Thank you. Teyla, are you receiving?'

After a small wait, Teyla's voice swam over the radio 'yes doctor Weir? What is it?' Teyla asked curiously. Weir belatedly realised she had said that she would send them a message when the Jumper was ready to pick them up.

'Sorry Teyla, the Jumper bay's still damaged. I just thought I should apprise you of the developing situation here.' Weir quickly retold the entire series of events.

Teyla stayed silent for a long time. In the background Weir could hear Ronan cursing and demanding transportation or to be allowed to swim back to Atlantis and the rough brogue of Beckett trying to calm the Runner down.

'Is there anything we can do to help?' Teyla asked finally.

'No Teyla, I'm sorry. I promise we'll keep you apprised so that when you get back you won't have to be thrown in the deep end if the worst happens.'

Teyla paused again 'I understand Doctor Weir; I hope it won't come to that.'

'Me too, Teyla. Can you put Doctor Beckett on for a moment?'

The sound of murmuring and movement reached her ears and then Beckett spoke into the radio 'Aye Elizabeth, I'm here. How are you holding up lass?'

'I'm fine' Weir said unconvincingly 'you know, it's the same old thing. Listen, I need you to be ready to come home as soon as a Jumper gets there. We already know John's injured but by the time he gets back, I'll bet he'll probably need our Chief Medical Officer.'

Beckett laughed humourlessly 'I understand Elizabeth, we'll be ready.'

'Thanks Carson. Anyway, I have to go deal with Rodney. Apparently he's been beating himself up over this.' Weir shook her head and signed off, looking up at the Jumper Bay above her. This was _not _going to be fun.

'Calm down Rodney' Zelenka soothed 'we have been over this. Colonel Sheppard never takes anything you say to heart and you cannot hold yourself responsible for what has happened to him.'

'But I was so mean. And I said I would think of him and laugh about how he's stuck on that planet. What if he's sitting there dying and he's thinking about the last thing I said to him?'

Weir couldn't help herself, she just started laughing. As Mckay whipped round to face her, she could see Zelenka smiling as well. 'To be honest Rodney, I don't think that Sheppard reads that much into your words. He probably wasn't even listening to you when you said it.'

'Oh' said Mckay, surprised. He looked as though he didn't know if that was good thing or a bad thing and he started frowning as he tried to work it out.

At that moment, he was distracted by Doctor Kusanagi entering the Jumper bay with their lunch. Silently, with a stealthy, shy wink at Weir, she handed Zelenka and Mckay their lunch and quietly sat down to eat hers.

The distraction worked and Mckay quickly started wolfing his lunch down. Clearly pleased with herself, Doctor Kusanagi muttered 'Itadakimasu' and started eating her own lunch.

Weir sat down with them, though she had no lunch of her own, and waited. Eventually, after relieving himself of indigestion from eating too fast, he gave Weir a small glance and turned away uncomfortably.

'I know what you're waiting for Elizabeth' he said finally, staring down at his nearly eaten sandwich 'but I'm sorry, I can't give it to you. The bay is so damaged, we're really lucky that it can be fixed at all. At the time I didn't think it was too bad but as we fix problems, new ones keep popping up.'

'What's the prognosis?' Weir asked quietly, deflated by the news.

'If we're lucky, within two or three days we'll have the roof hatch operational again. That wasn't too badly damaged. But Sheppard damaged the floor circuits badly when the jumper blew' he left the rest unsaid but Weir understood.

There was no help coming. Sheppard would have to make it out of this one, alone.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine:

Sheppard grimaced as the chief tightened the ropes, securing him to the pole in the village square; having his hands tied behind his back was causing massive pain on his cracked ribs. The wraith ships were already flying low overhead. Sheppard shivered as he heard the darts scream above his head and sagged against the ropes; his injured leg unable to support him.

'Listen to me, this isn't gonna work. The wraith will still cull your world.' Sheppard shouted at his captor. Sheppard flinched as he heard faint shrieks coming from the forest. Sheppard saw the same look of horror cross over his captor's face. 'Please,' Sheppard pleaded 'get my gun, what do you call it… the power of the ancients… I can protect you and your people.'

The chief laughed scornfully at Sheppard. 'You? How could you protect us? You who is at my mercy and who I have trussed up like a hog ready for roasting.' He turned from Sheppard disgustedly. 'Let us hope the Wraith will accept your sacrifice.' He quickly ran towards the relative safety of the trees.

Sheppard sighed dejectedly, craning his neck to look up at the darkening sky and the darts that were flying over the forest, the darts that were zooming over the forest, the beams working frantically. The screams were coming less often now, a sure sign that the culling was drawing to a close.

'Are you a friend of Major Lorne's?' A quiet voice called out from a nearby doorway.

Sheppard turned towards the voice, groaning as the rope rubbed against his chafed wrists. A small boy stood in the doorway of a wooden hut. He was around the same age as Jinto but from what Sheppard could see in the dim light he was looking more grubby and uncared for than Jinto could ever possibly look. 'Yes my name is John. What's yours?'

'I am Callen, why did the new village lord tie you up? Did you do something bad?'

'No, no I didn't, but your lord thinks that by offering me to the Wraith the culling will stop.' Sheppard said wryly.

'And will it?' Callen asked shifting nervously in the doorway; he kept glancing fearfully at the sky where the first stars were already visible.

'Hasn't so far has it?' Sheppard shrugged. 'Why are you still in the village? Where is your family?'

'My mother has taken the little ones into the forest and my father was killed by the new village lord's men. My mother asked me to stay and protect the house from looters.' The small boy said this plainly in a voice devoid of all emotion.

Sheppard felt his blood boil. 'I don't think there's any danger of looters.' He said breathlessly, his chest feeling unnaturally tight. 'Can you come untie me and we can go help your family.'

Callen's eyes widened 'Even though the lord tied you up, you still want to help us?'

'Yes well, I'm soppy like that. Besides you didn't tell the great and mighty lord to tie me up.' Sheppard said carefully, giving the night sky a fleeting look apprehensively.

Callen didn't need telling twice, he rushed over to Sheppard's pole and struggled with the rope for several agonising moments. 'They are too tight, they will not come loose.' He cried.

'It's Okay.' Sheppard said more calmly than he felt. 'Do you know where they put my things?' Callen nodded his eyes huge in his emaciated face. 'Well run and get them all.' Callen quickly complied, running out of the square and out of Sheppard's line of sight. He sighed and tried to stand up, his injured leg shook under him but he gritted his teeth and stayed on his feet. God he loved adrenalin, it was his best friend, having gotten him out of many sticky situations. The darts were still circling ominously overhead but were no longer beaming. It was now fully dark and visibility was poor. Sheppard was left to his own thoughts and he found himself thinking about McKay. He could just imagine what Rodney would be saying if he were here, well apart from moaning that he was hungry, he would prattle on about how Sheppard had a 'saving people thing' and that it was a very bad idea to try and rescue others when it wasn't even certain that Sheppard could make it to the 'gate on his own.

'Your not wrong Rodney, you're not wrong.' Sheppard muttered. Soft footsteps were approaching and Callen was soon speeding back. 'I have them John.' He gasped, holding up Sheppard's TAC vest and P90.

'Great. Thanks kiddo. There's a knife in one of the pockets.' Callen fumbled around frantically before finally finding the small pocket knife. 'Now cut the rope.' Sheppard ordered.

Callen looked horrified. 'But what if I cut you?'

'It doesn't matter, come on.' Sheppard urged. Callen started hacking away at the rope that was knotted around Sheppard's hands. Even though he couldn't see the boy, Sheppard could tell how nervous Callen was from the shaking of his small body. Sheppard tensed as the blade nicked the skin on his wrist.

'I am sorry John.' Callen stuttered.

'Don't worry, carry on.' Sheppard said encouragingly, wincing as the knife sliced into him again. The rope finally slackened and Sheppard pulled his hands free. He smiled at Callen and clapped him on the shoulder. He reloaded his P90 and zipped his TAC vest up. 'Keep the knife.' He said to Callen, eying the bloodied knife. 'Let's move out.' He took one step and lurched sideways. He took a deep breath and forced himself to take another step. 'Stay close.' He ordered Callen.

They slowly made their way to the forest. Sheppard kept his P90 trained ahead of him, worried that there would be wraith scouting parties in the woods looking for survivors. The dense woodland wasn't easy to navigate and Sheppard felt his progress slow. The sweat was trickling down his neck with the effort of putting one foot in front of the other. 'Where would your mother hide?' Sheppard asked. Callen stepped in front of him. 'There is a cave over there. There is firewood and water stored there in case of Wraith attack.' He pointed to the left, further into the thick forest.

'Let's go.' Sheppard said, groaning slightly, Callen looked up sharply at the sound.

They carried on moving through the forest, finally making their way to the cave. One look in the entrance of the cave told Sheppard all he needed to know. 'They didn't make it, I'm sorry Callen.'

'No!' Callen shouted. 'No, they are still on their way. They must be!' He sobbed.

'I don't think they did.' Sheppard looked down at the boy who was shaking uncontrollably, his fists clenched. He was too young to have to deal with this, Sheppard thought angrily. 'We can wait here for a while if you like; see if they make it here.' Sheppard said kindly. Callen visibly relaxed, his eyes now shining with false hope. Not sure that he had done the right thing, Sheppard eased down onto the floor at the mouth of the cave. Callen came and sat next to him, both staring out into the surrounding woodland and both expecting different things to come out of the trees.

After a while, Callen fell into a fitful doze whilst Sheppard watched the sun rise above the trees. He knew that they should keep moving but Sheppard didn't have the heart to wake the sleeping boy, when waking meant that he would have to accept that the Wraith had taken the rest of his family.

Sheppard knew that he couldn't save everyone, and no matter what McKay said he didn't have a 'hero complex'. Even so, it still hurt to see people die. You would think he was used to it by now, especially as it was sometimes him who caused those deaths.

He gingerly got to his feet, trying to get away from his treacherous thoughts. He went to the back of the cave to the provisions. Callen had said that there was water there and Sheppard's body was screaming for hydration. He was starting to suspect that he had a fever, it would explain the sweating, and a fever could only mean one thing: infection. It was hardly surprising; the wound hadn't been cleaned and also hadn't been allowed to heal as it was still plugged with the spear head.

At the back of the cave was something that looked suspiciously like a large animal's stomach. Sheppard sighed, not really wanting to touch the disgusting bag but his body was crying out for water. The bag was covered in slime, Sheppard discovered as he bent down delicately to touch the stomach. It also had two tubes protruding from each side of the bag. He poked the bag a few times and saw it wobble in return. Yep, he thought, definitely full of water. Sheppard worked at one of the knotted tubes, impatiently trying to get it undone. He quickly lost patience with this method and took the bag back over to the mouth of the cave. Callen was still sleeping peacefully; Sheppard leaned over and took the knife from the boy's slack hand. He savagely ripped the bag open and water gushed out of the tear. Sheppard quickly tipped the bag over his head and lapped up the escaping fluid as swiftly as he could manage. He stopped as he heard a faint sniggering, looking up he saw Callen's eyes open and staring at him. 'Good afternoon Callen.' Sheppard said brightly, ignoring the stabbing pains in his head, thankful that the water masked the sweat that had been dripping down his face.

'That is not how to drink out of that, by the way.' Callen said, getting up to get his own water bag. He neatly undid the knot of one of the tubes and sucked out the water.

'Show-off,' Sheppard muttered 'try opening this then.' He threw Callen a chocolate bar from his TAC vest pocket. 'You'll like that, all kids so, some big ones do too!' Sheppard said thinking of McKay. Callen struggled in vain with the unfamiliar plastic wrapper before grabbing back the pocket knife that still had traces of Sheppard's blood on it. He deftly spilt the packet open and shovelled the chocolate into his mouth. 'Thought you'd like it.' Sheppard said, carefully probing his sore ribs. 'There's plenty more where that came from where we're going now, you need feeding up. Now rest some more, we're gonna leave when it's dark so that we can't be seen as easily.' Callen nodded reluctantly settling down against the cave wall.

Later that night, Sheppard and Callen were waiting by the cave mouth; they had heard a disturbance in the nearby woods. 'Shh.' Sheppard whispered to Callen. He listened carefully as another branch snapped outside. The question was, was it friend or foe. The footfalls were heavy and bold and Sheppard knew that there were Wraith Scouts approaching.

He put his finger over his lips in that seemingly universal sign of quietness and Callen nodded his understanding. The footfalls moved away and Sheppard hastily turned to Callen. 'We need to run to the 'gate,' Callen looked at him, bemused 'the er… ring of ancestors.' Sheppard elaborated. 'Do you know the way?'

'Yes, it is of some distance though John. Should we not wait here?' Sheppard shook his head. Callen was obviously still holding out some hope that his family would be found safe.

'No, the Wraith have decided on a complete culling of your planet, the Wraith are now looking for anyone who has escaped their culling beams. Now, you've got your knife, if for any reason I can't make it to the 'gate, you are to carry on without me, understand, you are to hide by the 'gate until you see Major Lorne or anyone else wearing the same uniform.' Sheppard smiled as Callen nodded mutely. 'Don't worry, that's not likely.' He said wincing slightly at the lie. The truth was that he had been getting weaker for quite some time now. His whole body seemed to be on fire, except for his lower, injured leg which was feeling numb. The leg would hardly take his weight at all; even now he was resting against the side of the cave. However, the adrenalin was still coursing through his blood. He steeled himself and let go of the cave wall. 'Let's move out.' He said assuredly.

The pair had made it almost to the edge of the forest before disaster struck. It had been slow and quiet progress so far but Sheppard's pain dulled senses heard the disturbance too late to do anything about it. The first Sheppard knew of the Wraith on their tail was when a stunner beam whizzed past his ear. Sheppard immediately grabbed Callen by the collar and threw them both to the forest floor, barely containing a yell when he landed on his injured leg and the spear shaft slid further into his thigh. He quickly rolled over and brought his P90 up. Firing warning shots in the direction of the stunner blast, he glanced over at Callen who had stayed face down on the forest floor. 'RUN!' He bellowed at Callen as he scrambled unsteadily to his feet. Callen got to his feet but instead of running, he took out the small pocket knife and stood defiantly next to Sheppard. 'I'm staying with you.' He muttered mutinously. Another stunner beam came close to hitting them and Sheppard answered with a burst of fire from his gun. He smiled down at Callen and said 'Alright then, help me to the 'gate.' He put his arm over Callen's bony shoulder and together they hobbled towards the 'gate with as much speed as they could muster.

They came out of the tree line directly in front of the 'gate. The sky was blood red with the rising sun. Sheppard huffed his way over to the DHD, wiping the sweat out of his eyes. He dialled Atlantis, frowning at the noise the 'gate was making. The wormhole whooshed in the ring and he pulled his GDO out of his TAC vest pocket. He hurriedly keyed in his code. 'That's it,' He yelled to Callen 'go through.' Callen apprehensively jumped through the open wormhole and Sheppard stumbled over onto the stone platform. He glanced over at Doctor Greenwood's body; he was lying near the open 'gate looking almost peaceful, his glasses slightly askew. Somebody had removed the spear that killed him, probably the murderer Sheppard thought angrily. He couldn't leave him there, though; there would almost certainly be Wraith that would be attracted by the noise of the 'gate. He knelt carefully beside the dead doctor and removed the glasses, placing them delicately in his TAC vest pocket. He grabbed Greenwood's TAC vest and heaved him over to the open 'gate. Sheppard's body screamed at this further misuse but he ignored it, trying to show the dead doctor the same respect that he would have shown a fallen military comrade. He finally made it through the wormhole, his body rematerialising in the noisy 'gate room. He looked around fuzzily. Callen was standing a few metres away, staring, frightened, at the soldiers pointing guns. 'Stand down.' He said weakly, falling to his knees. 'John?' Shouted Callen rushing over to him, Sheppard's vision was clouding over, voices growing farther away. He thought he heard a female voice shouting 'John? Are you alright?' before the world and the pain faded away into nothing.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten:

Weir held two fingers up in front of her face and sighed, hating their significance. Eighteen hours, almost two days, had passed since Mckay gave his hope-demolishing diagnosis. Even though she knew she couldn't get help to him, her heart still panged with guilt for leaving him all alone.

She had faith in him, of course, that would never change. He was one lucky flyboy sometimes and had gotten out of lots of situations with nothing but an adrenaline induced grin plastered on his face.

But this felt different.

Heaving herself to her feet, she pulled her mind out of its exhausted reverie and went to see if there was anything active she could do to take her mind off of Sheppard. As she walked into the control room, she automatically wished she hadn't. The technicians stared apprehensively at her and shared looks with each other that practically shouted _'she's not coping too well is she?'_

Sighing at the scientists' lack of tact, she decided to go for a walk. Not to the jumper bay or the mess hall, they were too crowded with people and she didn't want to run the risk of running into Mckay and having to endure another self hating rant from the worried physicist.

Instead, she continued down the hallways towards the living quarters, thinking of returning to her room to get some sleep. However, she was deeply surprised when she found herself outside Sheppard's door, the lights off indicating no one was home.

With a quick peek around, Weir let herself in and touched the panel on the wall to close and lock the door behind her.

Immediately there was an overwhelming sense of Sheppard in the room, pervading her thoughts as she walked over and picked up his guitar. Strumming a few notes, she sat down on his bed and held the instrument like a lifeline. Frightened that she was about to cry, she put the guitar aside and noticed Sheppard's battered copy of war and peace on his bedside table, dog-eared, coffee stained and left open and upside down, marking his place. Picking it up, she let out a small laugh as she noted that he was on page 52. She looked at the poem on the top of the page and smiled at its sentiment and continued to read as she fell into a gentle sleep.

What seemed like barely five seconds later, she was abruptly woken by Mckay's voice over the radio, excited and sad at the same time 'Elizabeth, we've got the roof hatch open! You can tell Beckett to pack up and get his voodoo using butt back over here.'

Weir suppressed a yawn as she replied to Mckay's enthusiasm 'okay Rodney, I'll get right on that… any… any news on the rest of the repairs?' she asked tentatively.

'No' came the resigned response 'we're doing the best we can but it's not any time soon, I can tell you that.'

'Just try your best Rodney, that's all anyone-'

Her sentence was cut off as alarms stared to blare all over the city, alarms indicating an incoming wormhole. Barely a second later Chuck's voice swam into her ear 'incoming wormhole doctor Weir'

'Any I.D.C's?'

'No, not yet Doctor… wait hang on… confirmed ma'am, it's Sheppard's I.D.C' Chuck could barely contain his excitement and Weir could hear the relieved murmuring in the background.

'Lower the shield, but have a fully armed security team ready for what comes through. And call a medical team to the gate room!' Weir shouted breathlessly, already running out of Sheppard's room and flying down the corridor.

People jumped out of her way as she sped down the hallways and hurried into the lower section of the gate room.

Her heart broke into confusion as she realised that, instead of Sheppard, there was a small boy standing in front of the gate, white as a sheet, the security force pointing their weapons at him.

The shaking boy looked over at her and quickly dropped a knife he was holding, backing away slightly. Weir looked down at the knife, instantly recognising it as a standard issue military knife. She noticed that it had dried blood on it, but as she looked up and began to order the stand-down so she could ask the boy about it, two people staggered through the gate, one dragging the other.

With a start, she realised it was Sheppard. He raised his head and looked over at the boy surrounded by the guards and ordered a stand-down before collapsing against the ground, the body of Doctor Greenwood falling beside him.

Weir watched in shock as the little boy shouted 'John!' and rushed to his side as the medical team sped into the gate room and the gate shut down behind them. Snapping back to the present as she saw Sheppard's eyes fluttering closed, she ran over to him 'John? Are you alright?'

But Sheppard didn't respond. The medical team pushed the security guards out of the way and the boy jumped up and moved closer to Weir as the doctors got to work, lifting him to a gurney and inspecting his injuries.

With a grim nod at Weir, Doctor Langrish barked an order for the trip to the infirmary and jogged after his latest patient. The child beside her looked as though he wanted to follow, but instead looked around him fearfully.

Weir looked up at the control room and told the waiting, white faced technicians looking back at her. 'Contact Doctor Beckett on the mainland' she called 'tell him to get back here as soon as possible!'

As Chuck nodded weakly back, Weir turned to the little boy hugging close to her legs who was staring intently at the security men and their weapons.

Nodding at them and advising them to return to their posts, she sent a tiny smile at the boy 'Hi, I'm Elizabeth Weir. What's your name?'

'C…Callen. Um, is John going to be okay?' he looked around wildly as if noticing the ancient architecture for the first time.

Weir smiled again, properly this time 'that's just what I was thinking Callen, why don't we go and find out'

As she began to steer a suddenly very curious Callen, Chuck's voice called down to her 'Doctor Beckett's confirmed take-off, he says he'll be here in 15 minutes.'

'Alright' Weir replied 'just tell him to make sure he's careful.'

Mckay joined them as they walked the journey to the infirmary 'how is he?' he asked, before noticing Callen 'who's the kid?'

'I am Callen. Is this the great city of the ancestors?' he looked up nervously, torn between curiosity and fear.

'Well… yes. But it's a big secret and we don't want the wraith to know' Weir replied delicately while Mckay frowned his disapproval.

Callen laughed at Mckay's expression, which only served to rile him more 'I understand Elizabeth, I wish my people hadn't been known by the wraith…' he looked down at the floor as he walked, rubbing a few tears from his eyes 'what am I going to do now that my village is gone?'

Weir stopped him in his tracks and knelt down beside him. 'Don't worry Callen. No matter what happens, we'll make sure we find you a good place to call home. Okay?'

Callen sniffed and nodded. Weir reached down and took his hand 'John should be in surgery right now. Let's go and see if we can get a good seat to say hello when he wakes up.'

Ignoring Mckay's worried look, she proceeded to propel Callen in the direction of the infirmary.

It was slow going as Callen stopped in every corridor, what he saw overwhelming his worry for his new military friend. Mckay wasn't helping matters, constantly trying to get Weir to tell him what was wrong with Sheppard, regardless of what the child heard.

As they finally got to the infirmary, there was a great flurry of activity as members of the medical staff rushed in and out of the operating room. Weir had barely gotten Callen settled on a bed and was about to ask what was going on when an extremely out of breath Doctor Beckett came bursting through into the infirmary heading straight for the sterilising materials. Without pause for breath, he pulled on clean clothes, patted Weir tenderly as he passed and entering the O.R.

Weir allowed herself a breath of relief. Not discrediting Doctor Langrish's abilities, she was a lot more reassured now that Beckett was in charge of her wayward 2IC.

However, that relief soon turned back to worry as two hours passed with no word as to Sheppard's condition. Ronan and Teyla had joined in her silent vigil almost as soon as Beckett had entered and Callen and Mckay had both fallen asleep, from either exhaustion or worry. They were leaning against each other in such a way that Weir knew that, in other circumstances, both she and Sheppard would never let him live it down.

Just as she herself was dozing off, the O.R doors hissed open and Beckett came wandering out, walking over to them tiredly. Mckay and Callen both work with a start and moved away from each other hastily.

'He's going to be okay' he said quickly, forestalling any questions. He won't be winning any fitness competitions but he's been lucky…. again' Beckett sighed 'maybe I should just be made into Sheppard's personal Doctor. I wouldn't be any less busy.

The group all sent each other weak smiles, but Callen interrupted 'where is John? I want to see him!' Callen leapt to his feet and made to move towards the O.R but Mckay held an arm out to stop him.

'It's okay Rodney' Beckett reasoned gently 'we're already moving him to the ICU. Even though he was already out of it, we gave him a shot of anaesthetic to keep him that way. He should wake up in a couple of days, give or take.' He nodded towards the end of the infirmary and Callen shot off without another word.

Weir shrugged at the others questioning looks and led them to follow the little boy.

Three days later, Sheppard was making a significant improvement. After waking up two days after his operation, he had already gained back his cocky attitude and was driving everyone in the infirmary crazy. He was also adamant that everyone should see his burn marks. If Weir didn't know better she would have said he was proud of them. He was especially keen that she look at them every time she came to see him, which was at least once every couple of hours.

As she walked through the infirmary doors at dinner time, having left Callen with Ronan and Teyla in the mess hall (Mckay having completely refused to look after him), she realised today would be no exception.

'Hey Elizabeth' he greeted her cheerfully, wincing slightly as he pulled himself into a sitting position 'don't you think these burns' he lifted his top up and pointed to a patch on his left side 'look exactly like a face? I asked Beckett but he just told me to stop bothering him while he was working.' Sheppard made a face to show what he thought of that.

Weir sighed and looked at the damaged skin, wistfully wondering why such things always seemed to happen to Sheppard. She cocked her head to one side trying to see what he saw.

'No John, I don't see a face' Sheppard frowned and stared down at his stomach again 'but I'm glad you're thinking positively about them' she sent him a weak smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

Sheppard shrugged and gave her a cocky smile 'they're good for showing off see? They're my war injuries. Beside they don't hurt very much. My leg twinges a bit though but don't tell Carson. He'll start fussing over me like a mother hen again.'

Weir laughed, the unspoken worry clearing her face and Sheppard grinned back appreciatively 'you should laugh more often Elizabeth, it suits you.'

'What?' Weir gasped, taken aback, but just as Sheppard looked at her again, the doors burst open and Lieutenant Magson came bounding in. The moment gone, Sheppard sent a bright, dazzling smile in Magson's direction.

Magson smiled back and cleared her throat 'Um, I figured you might be hungry. I know how terrible the food is that Doctor Beckett makes patients eat. So I got you this.' With a flourish, she pulled out a turkey sandwich from behind her back.

Sheppard's face lit up immediately 'wow, my favourite! You're a lifesaver honestly. I was afraid Beckett was gonna force-feed me hospital food.'

Magson grinned and nodded knowingly 'yeah, he tried that with me too. I ended up begging one of the nurses to discharge me!' she coughed as she realised Weir was in the room 'of course I got the all-clear first ma'am.'

Weir smiled 'as long as you did lieutenant. Don't go following Colonel Sheppard's example. There's only so much of one of him we can take!'

Sheppard looked jokingly affronted and Magson grinned appreciatively 'no ma'am. Anyway, I have a session with Major Lorne to get to, if you'll excuse me.'

'Of course. And tell major Lorne to take it easy as well as yourself.' Weir ordered.

'Yes ma'am and thank you' came the response, as Magson backed away and walked out of the door.

'She's a good addition' Weir noted 'once she's finished her training, she should be put straight on to an off-world team. Maybe Lorne's, they seem to work well together.' Sheppard nodded but he didn't seem to be paying much attention.

'Elizabeth, what happened with Doctor Greenwood? Have you had a funeral yet?'

Weir patted his arm sympathetically 'we sent his body back yesterday. It was only a small ceremony. He had a few close friends but he was shy. Doctor Langrish was his closest friend and he said that Eoin wouldn't have wanted anything big.'

'Who told his family?'

'Langrish went back with the coffin. He wanted to be their for the actual funeral.' Weir sighed 'He's taking some personal time to console the family.'

'I didn't know they were that close.'

'I don't think anyone did' Weir decided to change the subject before the talk became too deeply depressing. 'Listen. As the roof was fixed just before you got back, the Athosians are holding a picnic tomorrow that all of Atlantis is invited to. Think you're up for it?'

Sheppard nodded eagerly 'It's a great chance to introduce Callen to Jinto. If Beckett gives me the all-clear, I'm there.'


	11. Epilogue

Epilogue:

The jumper landed at the edge of the Athosian settlement and Sheppard hopped out, moaning to Lorne about the rubbish parking space.

Weir laughed at the tortured expression on Lorne's face. She had the feeling that Sheppard had been talking non-stop. She guessed that being tied up and tortured with no-one to speak to for ages made a person chatty.

She walked up to the pair of them and Lorne sensed his opportunity, slinking away quietly with a nod to Weir as soon as Sheppard turned to greet her. Weir couldn't help but laugh which made Sheppard glare at her as he realised.

'I'm surprised you took the time off to come out here. You're usually holed up in your office being busy.'

'Well, I do have a back log of work to catch up on seeing as how I haven't done much in the last few days' Weir admitted 'but it's good to get out and feel the fresh air and touch grass.'

'Ever the sentimentalist' Sheppard teased, before catching himself. He didn't know if Weir was still angry about the jumper bay.

Weir didn't notice his abrupt sentence ending as they had arrived at the picnic. It was a loud affair as three quarters of the Atlantis personnel had turned up and all the Athosians were there. Food was laid out in long tables and everyone was mixing together and laughing. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Lorne walk over to Magson and hand her a drink.

Seeing if Sheppard had noticed, she looked up at him and saw that he was looking in the opposite direction and that he had a big smile on his face. As she turned to look in the same place, she saw Halling come up to them. Behind him, Jinto and Callen were sitting at one of the food tables, eating and laughing with each other.

Halling greeted them with a bow of his head 'They have barely known each other for three hours and already they are the best of friends' he said appreciatively 'I'll be happy to take Callen into my home, I think he'll settle well into the village.'

Sheppard nodded gratefully 'I think that's the best news I've heard all week' he said truthfully and smiled at Weir's worried look.

Halling nodded 'yes, I'd heard about what happened from Teyla. I'm sorry for your loss.' The leaders nodded back and Halling decided that it was best to end the conversation. With another bow he walked back to Jinto and Callen.

Sheppard watched him sadly as he reached the table and ruffled Callen's hair, bending down to tell the boys the news.

As the boys cheered, Weir tugged on Sheppard's arm 'come on, let's get some food before it all goes.'

After piling Weir's arms with their favourite Athosian delicacies, Sheppard hopped behind her as she walked away from the picnic and settled down in a quiet clearing. Painfully flopping to the ground beside her, he rested his crutches and his back on a tree behind him and stretched his legs out in front of him.

After a moments pause, Weir asked 'How are you doing John?'

Sheppard grimaced. Weir had a feeling that he'd known that question was coming 'as well as can be expected I suppose. Look, I'm not going to lie to you. It's hard going through all that stuff. But I'm alright and I'll be 100 in no time.'

Weir smiled 'even so, I want you to go to at least one session with Doctor Heightmeyer.'

Sheppard groaned and started to complain but Weir cut him off 'and I mean one full hour long session. Don't just sit there saying nothing for five minutes and then think you're done like last time.' She laughed at the pained, cornered look that was covering his face.

'Only if I get off Mckay ATA duty for a week. I don't think I'll be able to put up with him making me spend hours in the jumper bay helping him fix it.'

'Well, you did break it in the first place' Weir reminded him.

'It was an accident!' he retorted.

'Rodney was complaining that you do these sorts of things on purpose' Weir teased.

Sheppard shot her a pleading look 'Elizabeth, Mckay thinks everyone's out to make his life miserable. That's why he wants to beat everyone to it, and make them miserable first.'

Weir laughed, reminding both herself and, it seemed, Sheppard of their last conversation. Shaking the moment out of her head for a later time, she pressed 'two sessions and you've got yourself a deal.'

Sheppard groaned even louder but held out his hand in defeat 'deal.'

They clasped hands briefly and set about demolishing the rest of the food. They were just re-entering the loud picnic area when Sheppard had a sudden insight.

'What if we gave Callen the job of Mckay's personal assistant?'

Lorne, who had been standing nearby with Magson, overheard him. 'That's great sir' he called over 'I'd like a promotion!'

'What? I'm sure that McKay would really appreciate it. Callen's a really hard worker.' Sheppard said defensively. He heaved himself up awkwardly. 'You know what, I'm gonna go tell him the good news.' Lorne snorted.

Sheppard ambled over to the buffet table and sure enough found McKay in a perfect position to reach the food easily. 'I can smell citrus. Does any of this food contain citrus; are you trying to kill me?' McKay was shouting generally at the Athosian population.

'Hey Rodney, can I have a word?' Sheppard asked.

'What now? Can't it wait?' McKay eyed the buffet table forlornly.

'It won't take long.' Sheppard promised patronisingly. They slowly moved away from the hustle and bustle of the picnic. 'Elizabeth has given me time off from being your skivvy.' Sheppard said happily.

''What!' McKay said incredulously. 'Why would she do that? Oh you put you flyboy charms on her didn't you? Well that's great that is, once again you wriggle your way out of trouble.'

'Hey, I seem to remember once almost being knocked out of the air by a flying drone in Antarctica.' Sheppard retaliated.

'How could that possibly be my fault, Carson was in the chair not me. And when I was just about to apologise for my comments before you went off-world.'

'Really, I'm so touched Rodney.'

'No I said I was going to apologise.' McKay countered.

'Too late apology accepted.' Sheppard said gracefully.

'No- Wha- Oh that's it.' McKay stormed off in the direction of the buffet table. Sheppard tried to keep up in vain but couldn't match McKay's angry stride.

'It's so generous of you to admit you were wrong and I hope you get on well with Callen as your new assistant.' Sheppard shouted after him. McKay stopped mid-stride and turned around to glare at Sheppard. If looks could kill, Sheppard thought gleefully. McKay shook his head and carried on walking back to the picnic. Sheppard thought he heard McKay mutter 'Stupid flyboy.' before McKay moved too far away for his voice to carry.

'It went well then?' Weir remarked ironically, walking over from the picnic.

Sheppard grinned 'Is it wrong that I enjoyed that?'

'I wouldn't expect any less from you.' She replied.

_A/N: Well there it is. Thanks for all the reviews so far and please review if you have the time, I read them all and it always helps to get constructive criticism. I am sorry for those who have been waiting for a long time for this story to be finished but my life was so hectic with my final few months of university. I now have all the time in the world!_


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